H.S. softball: Haddon Heights rewrites history on its way to No. 1 ranking
It was a nine-game, 24-day journey.
A trip that took a very good team from South Jersey and transformed it into the Garden State’s best.
The softball squad from Haddon Heights High School traveled into unchartered territory and returned as the region’s first conquer of the Tournament of Champions.
For their accomplishments, the Garnets finish the season as the No. 1 team in our Mean 15 rankings.
As Michelle Schlichtig-Hastings returned home for her second stint as head coach, the Garnets put together a solid regular season which included the Colonial Conference Liberty Division banner.
However, there were some bumps in the road with an 8-1 loss to Cedar Creek in the Battle of the Conferences Tournament at Overbrook in early April and three more losses over the next six weeks to Sterling, Burlington Township and Delsea by a combined 5-0 score.
The postseason is the time to shine, and the Garnets were ready to rock.
Maybe the final regular-season game should have been a sign as Haddon Heights clinched the Colonial Conference title with a 10-0 five-inning rout of Sterling behind the one-hit, 14-strikeout pitching of Sophia Bordi.
Haddon Heights rattled off nine straight wins in the postseason, outscoring its opponents 41-3.
And when the spotlight of the biggest games was on, the Garnets stole the show.
Haddon Heights secured the South Jersey Group 2 crown with an 8-0 victory over defending champion Cedar Creek. In the game, Bordi homered three times and struck out 15 as the Garnets avenged a regular-season loss to the Pirates.
In the state final, Bordi fired a no-hitter with 20 strikeouts and Maddy Clark homered twice as Haddon Heights earned its first title since 2013 with a 4-0 win over Hanover Park.
After a TOC opening win over Morris Catholic, Haddon Heights knocked off nationally ranked Donovan Catholic 6-1 before earning the title with a 2-0 triumph over Warren Hills becoming the first, and last, team from the region to achieve the feat. The TOC will not be contested in any sports moving forward.
Haddon Heights finished its season at 25-4, completing one of the most enjoyable rides in South Jersey softball history.
Roster
Seniors: Haley Hawkins, Kylee Helmetag, Gianna Iuvara, Sydney Rowand
Juniors: Renee Begley, Shannon Broderick, Maddy Clark, Alicia Morano, Lydia Trailes
Sophomores: Gracie Granate, Cameron Kohout
Freshmen: Sophia Bordi, Hannah Butler, Zoe Fuller, Kayla Kellog, Sami Szabo
Final Mean 15 rankings
1. Haddon Heights (25-4)
2. Bordentown (24-2)
3. Clayton (21-4)
4. Egg Harbor Twp. (25-2)
5. Kingsway (23-5)
6. Lenape (17-3)
7. Burlington Twp. (18-4)
8. Paul VI (18-3)
9. Delsea (21-6)
10. Hammonton (17-8)
11. Cedar Creek (25-6)
12. Cherokee (15-8)
13. St. Joseph (19-10)
14. Gloucester County Tech (20-9)
15. Delran (16-7)
Tom McGurk is a regional sports reporter for the Courier-Post, The Daily Journal and Burlington County Times, covering South Jersey sports for over 30 years. If you have a sports story that needs to be told, contact him at (856) 486-2420 or email tmcgurk@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @McGurkSports. Help support local journalism with a digital subscription.
This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: H.S. softball: Haddon Heights rewrites history on way to No. 1 ranking
